Now that Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed and installed on the Supreme Court, the GOP has wrongfully assumed that the protests will end, and things will--as Mitch McConnell said--blow over. Mitch, (or-- as he is known 'lovingly' by protesters as 'Yertle the turtle-head'), couldn't be more wrong. The protesters participating in the #Occupythe100 demonstrations, are all too aware of the dangers a far-right SCOTUS poses.
---Protesters in St. Louis"shadows of Ferguson"
In my home town of St. Louis, a diverse group of women camped outside of Republican Senator Roy Blunt's office--since his staff refused to admit any representatives from the protest into the building. Blunt's people also refused telephone calls as well. So, on a hot, humid, Autumn day, a group of women took their grievances against Kavanaugh--and Trump--to the senator's home office. They camped out for days with a makeshift tent and food from a variety of donors. They stood unafraid as the body-armor clad police attempted to 'kettle' them to a single block radius. When the plan failed--the police brought in a large tactical vehicle complete with military insignia. Homeland Security was present, and all the officers had zip-ties and handcuffs ready. The protesters were not alone as they had male allies present--not to 'mansplain'--or control the dialogue, but to support us with their very presence. In St. Louis, especially since Ferguson--police have, in the past, taken pleasure in pounding on small women, skinny teenagers and the elderly. The police were not so bold when a group of large men appeared. These men were our allies, but they knew this was our fight. The protesters also knew that this #Occupythe100 campaign--wasn't an ending--but a beginning. Three of the protesters chained themselves to the front revolving doors of the glass and stone skyscraper--waiting to be arrested. One of them chained his neck to the door, which the police tightened to the point of near suffocation for a few moments--before they cut the chains. Many of us tried to obtain video footage of this officially sanctioned strangulation, but the police physically blocked our cameras--hands on their guns at all times. It was punishment for daring to challenge the dominant narrative--that of white, Christian male privilege. Most of the women were rape survivors and they shared their stories in the middle of the hot, summer night. Dr. Kristine Blasey-Ford's name was on everyone's lips--as a battle cry in a lawless wilderness. After the confirmation was finalized, a group of a dozen protesters locked arms in the middle of the intersection and conducted a 'die-in' by laying down in the street, refusing to move until police forced them into custody.
According to multiple protesters, this confirmation fight over Brett Kavanaugh--and the subsequent protests--were merely the symptom--of a much more toxic disease--namely the demise of democratic rule itself. The protesters realized that this coup by the GOP of Trump, is a rape of a different type. The very concept we know as 'rule of law' is being assaulted--with Kavanaugh enthusiastically pumping the kegger and--Trump leading the impotent catcalls.
---Kavanaugh--frat-boy extraordinaire provides legal cover for crimes against democracy"
There was never any doubt that Kavanaugh would be confirmed since the GOP always had the votes locked up. The 'dog and pony show' that is Senator Susan Collins, served as a necessary distraction, while White House Legal Counsel double checked the theories needed to grant a 'get out of jail free' card, to not only Trump--but eventually, to any politically appointed cabinet heads. Susan Collins teased the protesters with a faint promise of decency as she bought time for White House attorneys. This entire escapade was part of a GOP scheme to codify an entire class of politicians as--above the law--and it was likely heralded by The Federalist Society under the helm of DC beltway insider--Leonard Leo. The plan involves the following components: a judicial pronouncement declaring the POTUS and (eventually) all cabinet officers to be immune from prosecution while in office, the adaptation of a precept known as the nondelegation doctrine which would, in time, invalidate any federal regulations not specifically stated in the actual legislation, and the theory of original intent itself. Together, these components form an unholy triad of powers that would satisfy any dictator.
--Kavanaugh's theories on unlimited POTUS power"
By now, Brett Kavanaugh's paper on the need for presidential immunity from criminal prosecution is well known, but the White House Counsel under Trump has been looking to carve even more exceptions. Kavanaugh wrote in the Minnesota Law Review, a lengthy and flawed justification for presidential immunity from civil and criminal prosecution while in office. Below is the principle Kavanaugh would evoke that theoretically mandates any president to be--above the law.
""I. PROVIDE SITTING PRESIDENTS WITH A TEMPORARY
DEFERRAL OF CIVIL SUITS AND OF CRIMINAL
PROSECUTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS "
(Source : https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000164-89c2-d96d-a564-99c358430000)
In his long-winded discourse explaining this stance, Kavanaugh provides technical 'legal' cover for his argument, while conveniently avoiding the giant 'white elephant' in the room--namely the very idea of elevating any president to the level of an unaccountable--though allegedly 'temporary'--monarch. The usual talking points were given using ethically challenged legal jargon--namely--national security, emergency situations, and overall executive efficiency. Ironically, attorneys and judges affiliated with the Democratic party have also agreed on these same terms--as Kavanaugh discusses in this infamous opinion. What these legal eagles seem to conveniently forget is one simple--'inconvenient truth'--that the presidency was never meant to be an elected monarch. The very idea of such an arrangement is a foul insult and cruel joke on the very notion of 'Rule of Law.'
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